The regulatory body for letting agents ARLA Propertymark — alongside research consultancy Capital Economics — has revealed in its ‘Impact of Short-Term Lets’ report that the number of active listings for short-term lets on Airbnb in the UK rose by 33% to 223,000 in 2018 (2017: 168,000).
London saw the number of active listings rise four-fold from 18,000 in 2015 to 77,000 in 2019, while in Edinburgh they hit 32,000 in 2019 (2016: 11,000).
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The report found that up to 230,000 properties could be left unavailable for tenants if landlords who stated they were ‘very likely’ to move to offering short-term lets were to do so.
If this figure were to include landlords who claimed they were ‘fairly likely’, this would rise to 470,000.
“The growth in short-term lets is particularly concerning for the traditional private rented sector,” said David Cox, chief executive at ARLA Propertymark.
“As landlords are continuously faced with increased levels of legislation, it’s no surprise they are considering short-term lets as a chance to escape this.
“Unless the sector is made more attractive, landlords will continue to exit the market resulting in less available properties and increased rent costs.”
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